Later Settings

Josquin des Prez, the leading composer of the early Renaissance in Europe, died on August 27, 1521. To commemorate the 500th anniversary of the composer’s death and to close the season, the Tallis Scholars and their music director Peter Phillips, acclaimed around the world for their standard-setting performances of Josquin’s works, bring an extraordinary project to the Pierre Boulez Saal: Over the course of four days, they will perform Josquin’s complete masses in what will be the ensemble’s first-ever cyclical presentation of these works.

In 1502, Venetian publisher Ottaviano Petrucci, who had recently invented music printing with movable types, for the first time dedicated an entire publication of his to a single composer—Josquin. He thereby contributed greatly to the dissemination of Josquin’s music, although his masses had already been circulating throughout Europe even before the printing age: the Missa De beata virgine has come down to us in no less than 69 manuscript sources.

Due to continuing Corona-related travel restrictions, the concerts with The Tallis Scholars and Peter Phillips cannot take place this season and have to be postponed. The “Josquin 500” project is now expected to take place from July 13 to 16, 2022.